Irish premier Leo Varadkar’s partner apologises for ‘poor judgement’ coronation posts

‘We’ve spoken about it and I think it’s fair to say it won’t happen again,’ the Taoiseach said

Leo Varadkar and his partner Matt Barrett with King Charles during a reception at Buckingham Palace prior to the coronation (Ian Jones/PA) (PA Media)

Irish premier Leo Varadkar’s partner has apologised for social media posts he made about the coronation of the King, saying they reflected “poor judgment”.

Mr Varadkar and his partner Matt Barrett were among those in attendance at the recent coronation service for Charles at Westminster Abbey in London.

They were also present at a reception in Buckingham Palace on May 5 and spoke to Charles ahead of the coronation ceremony the following day.

The Irish Times reported this week that Mr Barrett had posted several comments about the coronation to his Instagram account while attending the event.

When asked about the Instagram posts on Monday, Mr Varadkar said that it would be a “fair comment” to describe them as “irreverent”.

“Matt is a private individual, my partner for over seven years now,” he said.

“And it was some private messages sent to some friends on his private account.

“He never intended for them to go public but that happens sometimes and, look, we’ve spoken about it and I think it’s fair to say it won’t happen again.

He never intended for them to go public but that happens sometimes and, look, we've spoken about it and I think it's fair to say it won't happen again

Leo Varadkar

When asked if should he apologise, the Taoiseach said: “He’s a private individual and that’s obviously up to him but, like I say, private account, was never intended to be shared publicly and I don’t think we’re going to see a repeat of it.”

Shortly after this, Mr Barrett tweeted an apology: “On reflection, poor judgment on my part. Unreservedly apologise for any offence caused.”